RESULTS Demographics The survey elicited demographic information on age and grade in school. The majority of respondents, nearly 50% of the sample, were 14-15 years of age and in the ninth or tenth grade. Among the study sample 22% were between 12 to 13 years of age, and almost 30% reported that they were age sixteen or older. Middle schoolers (sixth through eight grade) comprised 26% of the respondents, and 20% of the survey sample were in the eleventh or twelfth grade.

Online Habits

Cyberactivity is discussed in terms of time spent online, most frequent location for accessing a computer, and most common activities. Most of the respondents (30%) indicated that they spend at least three to five hours online each week. Nearly one quarter are engaged in cyberactivities from six to nine hours, and each week 12% spend 10-12 hours online. The least frequent users of the Internet (less than two hours per week) represented 20% of the sample, and approximately 15% reported heavy usage, averaging over 12 hours each week.

The vast majority of the participants used a computer at home as their primary access site (92%). The school and a friend's house also were common alternative sites. Least common sites were libraries and work settings. When online, 58% of the respondents spend their time sending instant messages or emails to friends, 20% surf for new things on the web, and 16% primarily spend time in chatrooms. Only a small percentage (one percent, respectively) indicated that the majority of time online is spent working on building a web site, reading discussion boards, interacting at game sites, or engaging in homework and research.

Supervision of Online Activities

The majority of the adolescents indicated that their parents had discussed online safety with them (70%), and 35% reported that teachers addressed cybersafety. Conversely ongoing discussions about cyberactivities was less common with only 30% indicating that a parent, caregiver or teacher engages them in at least periodic communication about their online experiences. While surfing online, half of the participants specified that their parents or teachers directly supervise them at least occasionally by sitting with them when they are surfing or checking their screen periodically. Less than nine percent reported that software is at least occasionally used which reports on their online surfing.

The results suggest that the dialogue with and monitoring by significant adults seems to make a difference for many young people. None of the teens who had a significant adult spend time with them while they surfed reported engaging in cybersex, while almost 60 percent of the adolescents in general reported experiences with sexually explicit exchanges online. Table 3 captures the significant inverse interaction between direct supervision, periodic monitoring, and ongoing discussions with adults which are associated with a decreased tendency to engage in cyberactivities (i.e., disclosing personal information, offline meetings, sharing photos, exposure to threatening messages) which may lead to potential harm. The protective function of these nontechnical safety measures, however, cannot prevent exposure to potentially disturbing content online, although it may create a safety net around the child which assists in mediating the deleterious effects of these experiences.

Patterns of Interaction Online

The respondents were asked to select activities from a continuum of online risks in which they have engaged. Sixty percent of the participants reported that they have filled out a questionnaire or form online, giving out personal information (i.e., name, address, date of birth, phone number, or school name). Additionally 45% have revealed similar information to an individual they met online. Sixty-one percent have received pictures from someone online, and 23% disseminated pictures of themselves to another person that they met in cyberspace. The exchange of suggestive or threatening email messages is a less common phenomenon with 15% identifying themselves as the recipients of disturbing communication online and three percent acknowledging that they have initiated threatening or sexually explicit messages.

An association has been identified with time spent on line and the probability of engaging in risky activities. As adolescent girls spend an increasing amount of time on-line, they are more likely to participate in destructive or potentially dangerous acts. This correlation was persistent across all assessed areas, and suggests that cyber-misconduct may become increasingly prevalent as youth expand their use of the Internet (See Table 3).

Development of a Cyber Victimology Profile

A logistic regression model also has been developed based on the online data to assist in formulating a victimology profile for adolescent girls in cyberspace. Based on the premise that certain online activities (e.g., sharing personal information, engaging in threatening or sexually suggestive communication, meeting offline with online acquaintances) contribute to greater potential for harm, the victimology profile begins with a focus on the most insidious danger to youth in cyberspace-Internet related exploitation as a result of real life meetings with an online acquaintance.

The outcome that is being modeled in logistic regression is the log of the odds of agreeing to meet with someone as a result of an online encounter. In the sample, 1360 girls endorsed the statement "I have agreed to meet with someone in person I have met online", while 9481 girls did not. Although the odds of endorsing this behavior are 1360/9481 or .143, the odds are not equal for all subgroups within the sample. Based on the conjecture that the odds may depend on whether or not a teacher has discussed Internet safety, for girls that have not discussed Internet safety with a teacher the odds of agreeing to meet someone in person after online interaction are .1585 (948/5982). For girls who have discussed Internet safety with a teacher the odds of agreeing to meet someone in person they have met online is less, .1177 (412/3499). It is common to take the ratio of the odds, .1177/.1585 = .743. The odds ratio is interpreted to say girls who have discussed internet safety with a teacher have odds of agreeing to meet with a stranger which are only .743 times the odds of girls who have not discussed internet safety with a teacher. Thus, teacher training on Internet safety has a positive effect on diminishing the potential risk for exposure to cyberviolence.